Guidance for Perceiving Minds — Page 48
h a d rat Mirza ghulam AHmAD as 48 you so that you are protected from thieves and aggressors. Is the reward for goodness other than goodness? Indeed, we saw before it a painful time, during which destruc- tion loomed. Today, with its shield, paradise has been offered to us. We pick from its fruits and take refuge in its trees. That is why I have said more than once that Jihad and raising the sword against the Government is a great sin, how can a benefactor harm someone who is generous? Whoever harms their benefactor is wretched. The denial of good that befalls you from a person or an animal is nothing but the denial of the blessing of the Most Gracious. The cruellest of hearts in the eyes of Allah the Gracious, is a heart that forgets the benevolence of the merciful benefactor and injures a person who sheltered them as a beloved and saved them from distress. And whoever harms the benefactor has a cursed heart or he is akin to a mad dog. Therefore, it does not behove the believers to kill the priests, for they did not carry weapons, and did not kill a Muslim man or Muslim woman for the sake of religion. So, it is not righteousness to draw swords on them, or to sharpen spears to harm them, but rather, prepare for them what is equivalent to what they have prepared for you, that is the commandment of the Quran. Thus, understand and be diligent, and do not transgress. Indeed, Allah does not like the transgressors. Certainly, an evil or blind person will attack me and say: Woe to you, do you forbid Jihad, while we are waiting for the Mahdi who will shed blood, conquer countries, and capture everyone who shows disbelief and stubbornness? The answer is that these stories are not proven in the Quran. Rather, the Mahdi will come with dignity and tranquillity, not like a madman with sword and spear. How can a sound mind and clear understanding accept